Motor vehicle door hinges



July 15, 1957 MCFERRLL HoLL'ANswoRTl-y 2,799,042

MOTOR VEHICLE DoR HINGES Filed oct; 21, 1954 l s sneets-sneet 1 July 16, 1957 MCFERRELLHOLLANSWORTH 2,799,042

MoToR VEHICLE DooR HINGES Filed oct. 21, 1954 5 sheets-snee*b 2 IN V EN TOR.

@bll/Ce@ WM www, 42M y MW July 16, 1957 MCFERRELL HoLLANswoRTH 2,799,042

i MOTOR VEHILE DooR HINGES Filed oct. 21, 1954' s sheets-sheet 5 f ihm,

IN VEN TOR.

BY w Mov, x mw 2,799,042 I v Moron VEHICLE Doon HlNGEs l lY/clferrellV Hollansvvorth, Pittsburgh, Pa., assignor to McKinney Manufacturing Company, Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania y Application'ctober 21, 1954,-Seral No. 463,698' 7 Claims; l (Cl. 16--142)y This invention relates to hinges for the doors of automobiles and other motor vehicles,- and more particularly to'hinges that also serve asdoor stops and holders.

It is among the' objects of thisV invention to providea door hinge ofsturdy construction whichis easy to make', whichY can .be opened only a predetermined distance, which holdsv the' door by'means ofV friction' inopen posivnited States Patent O tion-,which cushions the door as it reachesfop'e'n position,

and which requires materially more force' toA start the hinge to"y close than is required for continuing its closing.

In accordance with this inven'tionVaV pairofhingek plates have their outer ends connected by a vertical hinge pin supported by'. one plate and extending through a barrel onA the other plat'e. Between the plates is a leaf spring that has its inner' end secured to one of them and has itsouter end extending part'way around the barrel. The outer endV` ofthe spring is provided' with' a stop, andf the other plate isprovided' with abutting means for engaging thestopwhenY the hinge is opened to thereby limitV the distance'the hinge can be openedl The spr-inghas a portionthat'mustbe flexedby the abutting means as the'hinge starts to close, whereby the hinge resists initial' closing movement and therefore is held open until it is desired toclose the door. The abutting means may be another leaf springlsecu-red to-theinner surface of the otherr hinge plate, or it-may bethat platelitself.

The inventionr is illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, in-which:

Fig.l lisa planviewof a-hinge;

FigA 2 isanupper horizontalV section showingthe'hinge open;

Fig'. 3 is a fragmentary side view of the outer end portion of the hinge;

Fig. 4 is a similar View of the outer hinge plate;

Fig. 5 isa' planf view of a modification' of'tli'is invention;

Fig. 6 is a central horizontal section through the hinge of Fig. 5, showing itopen;

Fig.Y Tis' an outer end ViewV of the' closed hinge? n Fig 8" is'-al pla-nviewof aJ further embodiment'of the invention;

Fig..9 isafside-viewthereof; and

Fig.` lOisla central horizontal section through'V the hinge of Fig. 8, but showing-it open.

Referring to Figs. l to 4 of the drawings, apair of parallel'v hinge" plates 1 and 2' are spaced apart a short distance but have curved overlapping outer ends. Thus, the outer end portion of one of the plates 1, referred to herein as the outer plate, curves around the outer end of the other or inner plate 2. The upper and lower ends of the curved portion of the outer plate are bent inward to provide horizontal flanges 3, the outer portions of which are provided with aligned holes that receive a vertical hinge pin 4. The outer end of the inner plate is wrapped around the pin and forms a barrel 7, so that the two plates are hinged together. Generally, the outer plate is bolted to a door frame 5 and the inner plate is bolted to the door 6.

2,799,042 Patented July 16, 1957 In order'toI control the distance that the hinge can be opened by the-door, whereby to limit the distance the door can-be opened, a pair of overlapping leaf spring 8 and 9 are disposed' between the hinge plates'. The inner spring 9ex't'ends` along -the outer end portion of the innerV hinge plate- 2' and has its inner end riveted to that plate near the hinge pin. As shown in Fig. 1, this spring extends part way around barrel 7 1in the space between the outer ends oftheftwo plates. The outer end of the spring is bent away" fromithe hinge pin to provide a vertical shoulder or stop 10. The-inner end of the other leaf spring is riveted to the outer plate, and the outer end portion is curved toward spring 9 so that` its inwardly bent end 11 tightly engages' the inner" spring'- a predetermined distance from the stop" 10.- When the door is opened, the inner hinge plate' 2 is swung outward. This causes the inner spring 9 toi slide across they outer end of' the other spring until stop" 10- strikes* the bent outer end 11 of the outer spring, asshown in Fig. 2. This engagement of the outer ends of they two springs limits the distance that the hinge and door: can be' opened, and yet the door is stopped in a resilient manner instead of abruptly by a rigid stop.

Another feature' of this invention is that when the hinge isinl its wide openI position it will tend to stay there because' it requires an abnormal force to start it to close. This' is dueto thefact that the inner spring 9 has a portion that must be flexed to some extent by the other spring before; the hinge can be closed. Thus, the portion of the'inn'er spring near stop 10 is curved outward away from: the hinge'pin to" form a hump 13, which the outer springmustpa'ss when the hinge starts to'close. Between the hump and the stop there isa depression or' groove 14 thatv receives theend-'of the outer spring. In order for the outer spring to leave this groove and move across the hump, the hump must be flattened to some extent. At the' same time the outer spring' can be sprung away from thehinge pin.; Thel force required to flex the springsV in this'manner resists closingof the hinge. Consequently, the hinge not only supportsY the door, but it also determines how far thel door can' beopened and it keeps it from being closed byl gravity or moderate wind pressures.

In the modification shown in Figs. 5, 6 and 7, the outer endsofthe inner and outer hinge plates 16` and 17 likewise are pivotally connected by a vertical hingev pin 18. However, in-closedA position the inner plate 16, which supports the'door 19', rst extends away from the hingev pin' at right. angles tothe adjoining portion of the other plate and then extends parallel to that portion. Riveted to the innerrsurfaee of t-he portion of the outer plate' just mentionedis the inner end of a leaf spring 21. The spring extends outwardacross thehinge barrel 20 and through v an enlarged'reetangular opening 22 in the outer end portion of the inner plate. This opening is formed by bi-` furcating the'outer end ofthe plate. The spring projects from the opening and curves back part Way around the barrel. The outer end of the spring is bent outward tol form a laterally projecting step 23 which, as shown in Fig. 6,- will-be engaged by the inner end wall 24 of opening Z2 when the hinge is opened the desired extent. This engagement prevents the door from being opened farther.

While the hinge is in its open position, the spring presses tightly against the inner surface of inner plate 16 to hold the door open. For this purpose the spring is provided with an outwardly bent portion or hump 25 near stop 23. Before the hinge can be closed, enough pressure must be applied to the inner plate to cause it to force the engaging hump of the spring inwardly towards the hinge barrel. The resistance of the spring to being flexed in this manner is what holds the hinge open and resists its closing. As in the rst embodiment of this invention, the leaf spring not only forms a stop that limits the dis tance the door can be opened, but it also tends to hold the door open after it has been swung outward.

The shape of the hinge plates 27 and 28 in the further embodiment of the invention shown in Figs. 8, 9 and 10 is similar to the plates 16 and 17 just described. The inner end of a leaf spring 29 between the plates is riveted to the outer plate 28 not far from the hinge pin 30, and the spring then extends outward through an enlarged rectangular opening 31 in the outer end portion of the inner plate. The outer end portion of the spring extends back past the hinge barrelv 32 and has its outer end bent outward to form a stop 33. When the hinge is wide open, as shown in Fig. l0, this stop is not engaged by the end wall of opening 31, as in the preceding embodiment, but by other means, preferably the outer end of a second leaf spring 34, which isriveted to the inner surface of the inner hinge plate. The outer end of this spring projects out into opening 31 and is bent to provide its inner surface with a groove 36 that extends from top to bottom of the spring. When the hinge is wide open this groove receives a vertical rib 37 that is formed by bending the other spring in a similar manner. In order to separate these interengaging detents, it is necessary to apply enough force to the inner plate of the hinge to cause the inner spring 34 to ilex the outer spring towards the hinge barrel. As soon as the groove moves away from the rib the hinge will close with a normal amount of pressure. It therefore will be seen that the rib and groove hold the hinge in wide open position until an abnormal closing force is applied to it.

According to the provisions of the patent statutes, l have explained the principle of my invention and have illustrated and described what I now consider to represent its best embodiment. However, I desire to have it understood that, within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically illustrated and described.

I claim:

l. A door hinge comprising a pair of hinge plates, a vertical hinge pin and barrel connecting the outer ends of the plates, a leaf spring between the plates having its inner end secured to one of them and having its outer end extending part way around the hinge barrel, the outer end of the spring being provided with a stop, and a second leaf spring between the plates having its inner end secured to the other plate and having an outer end slidable along the first spring and adapted to engage said stop when the hinge is opened, at least one of the springs having a portion that must be exed by the other spring as the hinge starts to close, whereby the hinge resists initial closing movement.

2. A hinge in accordance with claim 1, in which the outer end of one spring is bent to provide a groove and the outer end of the other spring is bent to form a tongue adapted to project into the groove when the hinge is open.

3. A hinge in accordance with claim 1, in which the spring with the stop is provided with a groove extending along the side of the stop, and the outer end of the other spring is bent to form a tongue adapted to extend into said groove and engage the stop when the hinge is open.

4. A door hinge according to claim l, in which Said other plate is provided with an opening through which said first spring extends.

5. A door hinge comprising a pair of hinge plates, a vertical hinge pin and barrel connecting the outer ends of the plates, a leaf spring between the plates having its inner end secured to one of them and having its outer end extending part way around the hinge barrel, the outer end of the spring being provided with a stop, and a second leaf spring between the plates having its inner end secured to the other plate and having an outer end slidable along the rst spring and adapted to engage said stop when the hinge is opened, one of said springs being provided with a vertically extending rib and the other spring being provided with a groove for receiving said rib when the hinge is open, whereby to close the hinge enough force must be applied to it to slide the rib out of the groove.

6. A door hinge comprising a pair of hinge plates having laterally spaced portions, the outer end portion of one of the plates extending substantially perpendicularly from its adjoining portion toward the outer end of the other plate, a vertical hinge pin and barrel connecting the outer ends of the plates, said outer end portionv of said one plate having an opening therethrough, a leaf spring between the plates having its inner end secured to said other plate and having its outer end extending part way around the hinge barrel and out through said opening and provided with a laterally projecting stop, a second leaf spring between the plates having its inner end secured to said one plate and having an outer end slidable along the first spring for engaging said stop when the hinge is opened to limit the distance it can be opened, and at least one of the springs having a portion that must be flexed by the other spring as the hinge starts to close, whereby the hinge resists initial closing movement.

7. A door hinge comprising a pair of hinge plates, a vertical hinge pin and barrel connecting the outer ends of the plates, a leaf spring between the plates having its inner end secured to one of them and having its outer end extending part way around the hinge barrel, the outer end of the spring being provided with a stop, the outer end portion of the spring being curved outwardly away from the hinge pin to form a hump spaced from said stop, and a second leaf spring between the plates having its inner end secured to the other plate and having its outer end slidable along the tirst spring and adapted to engage said stop between the stop and said hump when the hinge is opened, whereby the outer end of the second spring and said hump must slide past each other before the hinge can be closed.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,067,427 Hester July 15, 1913 2,055,348 Hansen Sept. 22, 1936 2,133,663 Johnson et al Oct. 18, 1938 2,265,704 Stein et al. Dec. 9, 1941- 2,513,751 Semar July 4, 1950 2,577,456 Doman Dec. 4, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS 457,568 Italy May 23, 1950 

